The clinical value of Fufangkushen injection in the treatment of stomach cancer: a meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the effects of Fufangkushen injection combined with chemotherapy in the treatment of stomach cancer.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The relevant clinical trials about Fufangkushen injection combined with chemotherapy in the treatment of stomach cancer were search in the data bases of Pubmed, EMBASE, Cochran and CNKI. The data related to objective response rate, Karnofsky (KPS) score and toxicity were extracted and pooled using the Stata 11.0 software. Dichotomous data was presented as risk ratio (RR) and its 95% confidence interval (95% CI).

RESULTS

Thirteen relevant trials were included in this meta-analysis. Heterogeneity test indicated there was no statistical heterogeneity among the studies, thus the fixed effects mode was used to calculat the results. Pooled results indicated that the objective response rate (ORR) and KPS score improvement in Fufangkushen chemotherapy group was significant higher than that of control group (RR = 1.24, P < 0.05). Synthesis data also demonstrated the Fufangkushen injection can significantly decrease the risk of developing granulocytopenia in stomach cancer patients treated with chemotherapy (RR = 0.67,P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Fufangkushen injection combined with chemotherapy can increase the objective response rate, improve the quality of life and decrease the risk of developing granulocytopenia in patients with stomach cancer.